The Next Departure
by angele92
Summary: AU: James and Lily Potter never died in the Wizarding war; Voldemort was nonetheless defeated, though not by their son. They grew into a family, having another child four years after Harry was born and naming her after Lily's late best friend, Marlene McKinnon. Now's the time for Marlene to start her first year at Hogwarts alongside her brother.


_"For what's the point of breeding children, if each generation does not improve on what went before." _  
_― Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall_

The sun peaked from over the horizon, shedding light on all the inhabitants of Godric's Hollow, waking most of them. Lily Potter was already awake, however, and sitting on the edge of the bed wiping tears from her eyes. She had hardly slept a moment last night while her husband snoozed soundly beside her, unaware of the turmoil inside his wife. Once she had deemed it an acceptable time to go downstairs and start cooking breakfast, she wrapped her robe around herself and meandered down to the kitchen.

Lily was surprised to find her daughter, already down there playing with the cat. The mother walked over to Marlene and stroked her long, red hair, hoping that all remnants of tears were gone.

"Darling, why aren't you asleep?"

The girl turned and looked at her with her intelligent, hazel eyes, ones she got from her father. "I'm too excited, Mummy."

Lily chuckled sadly and went over to search for some food. Taking out her wand, she summoned eggs and bacon along with a pan and began to cook them. The food sizzled and soon smells wafted up to the second floor. Soon, rustlings of a waking child resounded through the house and Lily knew her first-born son would be down soon enough. She couldn't say the same for her husband, though; it was rare that James would be out of bed before nine.

Harry finally found his way down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and wearing red-striped pajamas that Peter had bought him for Christmas the previous year. The fourteen year old was small for his age but clearly well-fed and happy. His circular glasses were lopsided across his face and his hair was a scruffy mop upon his head that his mother so often tried to tame.

"Blimey, Mum, don't you know that it's only seven in the morning?"

Lily offered her son a soft smile. "Yes, love, but it's such a big day, I couldn't sleep any longer."

Harry walked over to his little sister and rubbed his hand loosely on her hair, mussing up her hair. "Are you excited Marley? You're going to love Hogwarts."

The two children were only four years apart in age but they couldn't be any more different. Marlene hardly touched the toy broom her father had bought her while Harry had gone through seven toy brooms since he kept overusing them. Harry loved playing outside with his friends while Marlene liked staying inside to read her book. They were almost perfect reflections of their parents though they obviously had their own unique traits respectively. Harry was patient unlike his father and hardly ever lost his temper unlike Lily's fiery personality. Marlene was soft spoken and prefered to keep to herself which was very much the opposite of both James and Lily. Nonetheless, both parents were incredibly proud to have two children that were able to be whoever they wanted to be.

James stumbled down the stairs long after everyone had finished breakfast and Harry was helping Marlene pack her bag upstairs. The father yawned, rubbing his eyes underneath his rectangular glasses. He walked over to his wife and kissed her , tasting toothpaste on her lips.

"Did I wake up late? Why is everyone up so early?"

Lily smiled softly. "I suppose we're all just excited."

James meandered over to a chair for himself and sprawled out his long legs. "So, Marley's first day at Hogwarts. That should be fun, eh?"

Lily nodded, admiring her husband and grinning mischievously to herself. She really was lucky, having James as her other half. Over the years, he had gotten even better with age but still had the youth and playfulness that he had when he was seventeen. Every day was interesting with James Potter which was partly the reason she wouldn't go out of her mind when Marlene and Harry left. Standing up, she walked over and sat on James lap. Lily ran both hands through James thick curls, pulling his face to hers in a deep kiss.

James immediately reciprocated, wrapping his arms around his wife's waist to pull her closer to him. His lips crushed into hers hungrily and he was suddenly very much awake. Moving his hands down, he cupped her buttocks and Lily responded by lifting her left leg so she could straddle James. Her husband moved his lips down and started kissing her neck, chest, and collarbone, hearing her moan quietly all the way.

"We shouldn't, Harry and Marlene are upstairs!" But Lily continued to groan and mumble every time her husband's lips connected with her skin. She moved her hands down to his pajama pants and tugged them slightly, telling James what she wanted.

After a few gropes and grabs, James pulled away and pushed Lily's hair behind her ear. "Maybe we should go upstairs."

Lily nodded fervently and allowed James to carry her up the stairs, tiptoeing quietly by Marlene's room that was straight across from the stairs.

* * *

"Marley, you can't bring your stuffed puppy to Hogwarts. Only babies still sleep with stuffed puppies."

"That's not true! Mum said that lots of people my age bring stuffed animals to school!"

"Yeah, babies do," Harry mumbled but let it drop.

"Harry?" Marlene looked down at her hands, unable to look her brother in the eye. "What if I'm not sorted into Gryffindor?"

The boy paused, not quite sure what to tell her. He remembered when he, himself, had asked himself the same question. Would his dad be disappointed? Would he ever be able to live up to his parents standards if he were in any other house? Hours, weeks, even months before Harry entered Hogwarts for the first time were spent worrying about those kind of things. Since then, Harry had become everything that he wanted to be and more. The very first first-year to play on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, best student in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and favorite of Headmaster Dumbledore. Then again, he was in Gryffindor so he didn't really know how he would've ended up in any other house. Harry knelt down next to Marlene, resting a hand on her shoulder.

"Then you'll be the first Potter to ever be sorted into another house."

Marlene looked horrified but Harry continued.

"Just like I was the first first-year to be on the Quidditch team, like how Dad was the first Potter to marry a muggle-born, like how Mum was the first girl to turn down Dad." Harry rolled his eyes, familiar with his parent's love story.

Marlene still didn't look very convinced though. "But what if I'm a Slytherin?"

Chuckling, Harry sat down on the floor. "Then Slytherin will have gained it's first decent person." True, James' distaste for Slytherin's had carried down into his son, much to his mother's dismay.

Finally, Marlene offered a small smile and continued to pack her bag, stuffing in a small raggedy puppy into her bag. "I'm bringing the puppy and nothing you can say will stop me, Harry Potter."

* * *

Sirius Black marched up the the pathway to the Potter's house, still wearing the clothes that he had the night before. He had just gotten back from the full moon with Remus, the first that James hadn't been able to go to since he was on his honeymoon. Nonetheless, the Marauders understood that since James was the only one with a family, sacrifices had to be made. So there were no bitter feelings in Sirius as he paraded up to the front door.

His fist pounded on the door six times, just like he always did. After a few moments of silence, his fist pounded on the wood again until a small red-headed girl in blue pajamas padded over and grinned through the window. She opened the door quickly, before running into her uncle's arms.

"Hi Padfoot!" Her grin stretched all the way across her face, lifting Sirius' spirits.

He wrapped one arm around his niece, still rather uncomfortable with that kind of affection. In all fourteen years of being an uncle, Sirius still hadn't fully been able to accept the innocent love that they showered him with. They didn't know of his timidness when it came to being loved, he simply didn't want to tell them. He didn't want them to know that he hardly let anyone touch him like that, except them. He didn't want them to know why- that he could only remember harsh, cold touches from his family, never knowing the love and affection that came from family.

Of course he knew brotherly and sisterly love from the Marauders and Lily but this was different. The children knew nothing of Sirius' past, nothing about the abuses he experienced or the pain he suffered. The Marauders avoided affection or feelings, knowing that Sirius hated it. Even now, so many years after he'd left Grimmauld Place. The children just looked at him like the sun shone out of him, which almost always made him feel better. Today, knowing that they were leaving made him feel worse. He wasn't sure what he was going to do if he didn't get to see Harry's warm smile or hear Marlene's twinkling laugh. Everytime he looked at her he thought of her namesake though, which was sometimes too much for him to handle.

It had been nearly a decade since Marlene McKinnon's death and Sirius had never truly gotten over it. Well, no one had but he'd had the worst time coping with it. Marlene Potter was nothing like McKinnon, and for that Sirius was thankful. He just wished that the Potter's hadn't had to name their second child for the reasons that they had. It was a cold reminded that he was alone, and he would remain that way. Sirius shook his head, ridding his mind of the thought.

"Hullo Marley, are your parents around?"

"They're in their room right now, but Harry and I are packing upstairs if you want to help!"

Sirius grinned, knowing fully what Lily and James were up to. "That sounds fun but I think I'll pop in and say hello to Mum and Dad then I'll come help. How bout you go wait in your room till then?"

Marlene nodded fervently then bound up the stairs before slamming the door behind her.

With a smirk on his face, Sirius climbed the steps and turned the corner down the hallway until he was in front of his best friend's bedroom door. Without even knocking, he barged in and knew exactly what he would see.

Thankfully they weren't in a terribly compromising position just naked and panting next to each other, nothing Sirius hadn't seen before. There were quite a few times Seventh year when he would come back to his dorm to see the couple in a lot worse situations. Lily would always react the same, screeching uncontrollably while James would just chuckle and tell his best friend to piss off. Then Lily would smack James upside the head and storm out in her knickers. It was all quite comical.

"SIRIUS BLACK YOU NEED TO START KNOCKING!"

James' chuckle could be heard amidst Lily's shouting.

"DON'T ENCOURAGE HIM, POTTER!"

Sirius just laughed aloud and ran towards the couple before jumping upon the bed, landing smack in between them. Situations like these never made him uncomfortable, he loved to see Lily's face turn beet red and give James his best wink. He leaned over and kissed Lily on the cheek, clapping his best friend on the shoulder. She promptly swatted him away and reached over to grab her shirt off the floor.

James grinned. "You really should knock, mate, she'll never sleep with me again."

Lily was still furiously silent.

"Yes, I should knock but where's the fun in that? I wouldn't get to see Lily's face turn the same color as her hair."

"My face does _not _turn that red."

Both Sirius and James spoke in harmony. "Yes it does."

"Oh, piss off, both of you."

James leaned over his best friend to kiss his wife on the cheek which she scrunched up her face but turned and kissed him back. He then turned back to Sirius. "I should've known you'd show up sooner or later, but I thought you'd be with Moony?"

"It wasn't a bad full moon and he said he had to get to work early, you know how his boss is."

"It infuriates me how they make him work the day after a full moon," Lily chimed in. "AND they know about his condition!"

James shrugged. "Remus always said he didn't want to be treated any differently because of his being a werewolf."

"And he loves it there, everyone's pleasant to him." Sirius smiled, thinking of their other best friends well-earned happiness

"It's good for him," James agreed.

"I just wish he could get a break. I suppose he did need some normalcy though." Lily smiled at her two boys sitting in her bed.

Lily stood from the bed and went searching for a fresh set of clothes, knowing that James was shielding Sirius' eyes while she looked. Behind her, she heard James mutter "stop trying to look at my wife, you prick" to which Sirius replied "it's not my fault she's hot." That went on for several minutes until Lily was fully dressed in the same clothes she wore when she dropped Harry off for the first time. She wasn't superstitious but it was always nice to believe in good luck.

Standing from the bed and successfully kneeing James in the groin, Sirius made his way over to the dress and chucked a pair of pants at James. "You should probably put some clothes on considering the train leaves in an hour."

"What?!" James exclaimed.

"What time is it?" Lily searched for her watch that she had forgotten to put on this morning.

Sirius yawned and looked down at his own wrist. "Obviously ten o'clock if it leaves in an hour; c'mon Lily, it hasn't been that long, has it?"

Lily shrieked and pulled on a grey sweater before running out of the room to go find the children.

James moved more slowly, not too worried but there was still an anxiety present in his stomach. His little girl was leaving, for the first time. He had had the same feeling when Harry left and felt it every year since. Now he was losing both children which made him feel a lot older than he actually was. He tugged on a green t-shirt and grinned at his best friend. "I assume you're not coming?"

Sirius shook his head but didn't look his friend in the eyes. Going to the Hogwarts express meant the off chance of seeing his brother deliver his own children off at the train. Even when Harry left for the first time Sirius had made up some excuse not to go. "I've got-" Sirius started.

"It's fine, mate. You don't need to explain it to me, I get it."

Still Sirius couldn't look at his best friend, ashamed of his own cowardice. Even after all these years, he couldn't find it in his to face his own brother. It was something he hated thinking about but he just couldn't do it. He couldn't see how his nieces or nephews were, nor could he see the family resemblances; it would hurt too much. So he just avoided King's Cross altogether, finding comfort in a tall glass of firewhiskey instead.

James walked over and nudged his friends shoulder, nodding his head toward the door telling him they needed to go. The best friends walked down the stairs with heavy hearts before they hugged quickly and Sirius darted outside.

"Is Sirius not coming?" Marlene's small voice came down the stairs and startled her father.

James had been watching Sirius' retreating form, seeing his best friend change his mind several times before apparating as a last resort. Sirius turned around to the gate, almost came in then walked hurriedly away before anyone could notice. He did this several times, and every time James noticed.

"No, love, Sirius has some things he has to take care of."

Marlene walked up and held her dad's hand, grasping it tightly just as she did whenever she saw the sad look in her dad's eyes that was sadly familiar. It was the look of a soldier, though she didn't know that. It was the empty far away look of someone who has lost so much and still won the war. James often looked like that on days like these, when he was reminded of his Hogwarts years. Everything was simpler then, he didn't have to worry about anything back then. Thankfully the war was over but it never really left James heart intact.

"Daddy? Will you help me carry my bag out to the car?"

James nodded and picked up his daughter along with her suitcase. She was getting a little big for him to carry, but she was still very skinny so he liked to pretend that she wasn't growing up. Once he set her down next to the car and put her suitcase beside her on the seat, he went back inside for her trunk.

When he arrived back inside he saw Harry there too with an excited look in his eyes. James grinned and ruffled his son's hair. "Excited to go back, Harry?"

The boy nodded fervently. "I'm just excited for Quidditch to begin."

Lily descended the stairs wearing a light green dress that fell to just above her knee. It was a big difference from the t-shirt and jeans she'd been wearing before and James' heart fluttered, just like it always did even after all this time.

James carried Marlene's trunk out to the car and forced it in the back, thankful for the enlargement charm he'd placed on it the day before. A few moments later, Harry came stumbling out with his own trunk in his thin arms. It was almost the same size as he was and James grinned, seeing him struggle. Eventually Harry made it to the car and James helped him get it into the back as well.

Once the family was all piled into the car with their suitcases and Harry had Hedwig sitting on his lap, James turned the ignition and Lily turned around in her seat to look at her children. "Did you all eat enough? I put some snacks in your suitcases if you didn't want to buy the sweets on the train."

James rolled his eyes and reached into his pocket to pull out some change. Reaching back, he handed it to Harry. "Buy some sweets and share that with your sister."

"Yeah, yeah, definitely," Harry said but his mind was already on the train with his friends.

Lily bit her lip, trying to hold back tears as she saw how excited her children were to leave. She didn't blame them, Hogwarts was the most magnificent place in the world. She'd be more worried if he wasn't excited to go back. Still, it was hard to see him so ready to leave her. Soon she felt James' warm hand wrapped around her own and she looked up to see his soft smile. She tried to smile back but it was weak.

They arrived quickly to King's Cross though they all sat in silence. At the same pace they emptied the car of the children's luggage and entered the station.

Platform 9 ¾ stood before them, the bricks melting like butter when they ran through it to get the the real platform. There was only about half an hour until the train departed but once Harry spotted the red and brown hair of his best friends, he was quickly off to go see them. Lily and James allowed him to say hello to his friends, worrying more about Marlene as it was her first departure.

James wrapped a steady arm around his wife who was wiping tears out of her eyes. Marlene, was bouncing up and down both with excitement and trepidation as she prepared to go off to Hogwarts for the first time.

"Harry! Come say goodbye!" Lily shouted over to her eldest son.

Once he had come back, his mother pulled him into a tight hug and kissed his messy black hair. She tried to tame it by putting it behind his ears but promptly failed, as she knew she would; Potter hair could never be controlled, it had a mind of it's own.

"Mum stop, this is embarrassing!"

"Alright, alright, I'm finished. Just don't let it get too out of control okay?"

James stepped over and smirked down at his son. "Keep it just the way it is, Harry, the ladies love it."

Lily smacked her husbands arm. "That shouldn't be his main priority, James! He's fourteen for Merlin's sake."

A deep familiar voice came up behind them. "Evans, I was fourteen when I lost my—"

"Padfoot!" The two children exclaimed and ran over to Harry's godfather before jumping all over him. "What are you doing here?" Harry asked.

"Well, I couldn't just let you leave without saying goodbye now could I? And I had to see little Marly off as well."

Marlene's small voice twinkled up out of all the noise. "Where's Moony?" She missed her own godfather as much as she missed Harry's.

James came over and rested a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Moony can't come today, love. He had to go visit a friend last night." The usual lie came easily from his lips.

The youngest girl shrugged and walked back over to her mother. At that moment, the train let off it's low whistle and Harry came over to collect Marlene. "C'mon, Marly, we don't want to be late." He grabbed her hand and gently pulled her towards the train.

"Bye Mum! Bye Dad! Bye Pads!" Marlene waved happily at her parents. "I'll write to you as soon as I'm sorted!"

James chuckled and turned to his wife and best friend. "We all know what house she's going to be in."

"It's inevitable." Sirius agreed.

"Unavoidable." James smirked.

"But we will love her either way, even if she's in Slytherin." Lily said.

Sirius made a face. "I shudder at the thought."

Lily rolled her eyes and started to walk away from the platform towards the exit as the train began to roll forwards. "What am I going to do with you boys?"

The adults turned back and gave the train one last parting glance, thinking back to the day that they had all set foot on that train for the first time.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you liked it! Please review :)**


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